The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1887-01-29
WHEN NiAoRA WAS DRY.
A Remark able Day, Forty Years Ago,
I'm the History OF the Great
Cataract.

y
SAID and old resident Of Niagara Falls
Village, sight was witnessed at the
Falls OF Niagara that had never been seen
hefore, at least by people then on earth,
and In all probability such a sight will
never DO witnessed again. 1t was no.
thing more nor less than the running
dry OF the great cataract or at least so
acarly dry that it is no exageration to
call il so, in which condition the Falls
refnalnod for one whole day.
'The winter OF lS4S had been one of
DC coolest on record. and such ice has
never been known on Lake Erie since.
guess, as formed that season. 1t was
Of enormous thickness IL was quite
late in the spring before the ice was
loosencd, even about the shores of the
lake. One day think it was near
the end of April-a very stiff northeast
erly wind came up, and its force was
50 great that it moved the great fields
of ice, then entirely separated from the
shores up the lake, piling the foes in
great banks rs they moved. The sight
Of. these ice banks is described yet by
those who witnessed il as one of the
most awful grandeur. Toward night
the wind changed suddenly to the OPP
poste quarter, and grew into terrible
gale from that direction. The lakes
surface was packed with miniature ice
bergs, and these were hurled back by
the gale with such tremendous force
that an impenetrable dam was formed
inf the neck of the lake from which Nj
agra Falls flows, and the great current
of. wafer which finds its way from the
lake in the rushing channel of that
stream. to be dashed over the gigantic
precipice at the Falls. was SO held in
check that not more than one-quarter
of its usual volume could find passage
through the immense pack of ice.
Gas this pack was stubborn, it was
naturally but very short time time be-
fore the Falls had drained nearly all
the water ont of the river. This, of
course, occurred during the night, and
we people who lived in n Niagara Viii
ldgo knew nothing of the phenomena
until next morning. l remember that
awoke very carly that morning, with
the sense of something exceedingly
strange expressing me. 1t was some
time before discovered that the feeling
came from the fact that the noise of
nc cataract was almost missing. /
jumped out of bed, and OH leaving the
house found that scores Of others had
been awakened by the same circum-
stance, and were hurrying toward the
Falls TO see what the trouble was. We
found that the great Niagara Falls was
only about onc-quarter Of its former
volume.
1--WE had not heard of the trouble at
Lake Erie, and the terrible thought that
the Falls were running dry created
feeling of alarm not easily imaginable.
The American channel had dwindled to
= creek in comparison with its original
proportions, while the British channel
rcsembed some ordinary river IN the
droughts of August Goat Island was
as big rs two Goat Islands, rs the water
had shrunk from every side of it, leav-
ing n wide expanse Of wet, Shiny jagg-
ed rocks which no eye in that vicinity
had ever seen before. The bed of the
Canadian rapids, far out into the
stream, was dry, rs was the space be-
tween the lower end of Goat Island,
and out beyond the tower. The rocks
thus exposed were black and forbldding,
giving the dry river bed the appearance
Uf tract Of charred stumps. The
Three Sisters looked forlorn in their
enhanced dimensions. The great jet
of water which had, from time out of
mind. leaped into the air about 800
yards south of this group Of islands in
the great rapids, and which is leaping
there to-day. was not leaping that
morning, and, rs some one remarked
that day. the tremendous roar of Mag
ara had subsidized to q moan.
i'rhe scene was at once desolatei
strange and awful TO contemplate. The
picture will never leave my mind. The
whole village was out exploring caves.
dark recesses, curious formations in the
rocks, and other remarkable features
Of the cataract and rapids that no